Jungle Fever... allegedly.

I've got a lot to catch up! So since Friday, (my last post)... we spent the weekend with our homestay families. Before we left we were all so nervous about spending that much time with our families... as Professor Polk said, during these homestay weeks we're never really "off". If we're not on campus working for our classes (which is a substantial work load!), we're constantly having to culturally adjust to the ways of our Costa Rican families, which includes speaking exclusively in Spanish. Hopefully we'll be fluent before too long!

Lil ninja

Marcelo and me on night numero uno at his crib.

On Saturday Marcelo and I walked down the road and ran into his neighbors who are housing some of my friends. We kicked around the soccer ball, I got annihilated by las ormigas, and I realized that kids here are not afraid of eating ANYTHING that grows on a tree. Tamara's little girl, Laura, was eating a guava she found when she realized there was a worm in it. No big deal, to her at least. I also learned, through this interaction, that Marcelo has the hotts for "teh-meh-rah"... adorbz. For lunch, Doña Miriam made me an interesting soup featuring several foreign vegetables.. I was pressured into taking a shot of "Don Abuelo" Rum halfway through the course, which apparently makes the hot stew go down easier. It was so potent, I was burping up the taste the entire rest of the day. WOOF.

Outside Kristena's casa.

That night a big group of us hit up Bar Amigos to cheer on the good 'ol Estados Unidas as they took on-- and lost to-- Mexico. Out of all of the gringos and ticos in the bar, only two people were cheering for Mexico. That was awesome. Despite the sad loss, we all managed to have a good time. It started pouring while we were there, so Tamara and I had a struggle of a walk at the end of the night back to my house where we both slept. I lost my flip flop circa 5 times on the walk from where our cab dropped us off... note to self, brown rainbows and mud match really well.

Tyler doesn't drink out of cups.

Hatz n poutz

Count the chins.

Creepin... no surprise

Sunday involved catching up on a bunch of homework, a much-needed fam skype sesh, and SLEEP. I sleep like a baby here. We pack so much into each day that I have zero problem heading to bed each night by 9 and waking up around 7am. Monday we had class all day, and that night for dinner my family went to Tamara's family's house for a pizza dinner. It was delicious home made pizza with all kinds of vegetables including AVOCADOOOOO! Dad, I know, I need to be photographing my food. I promise I'll start doing so. 

This morning Doña Miriam made me a delicious breakfast of all my favorite things- avocado, fried plantains, and this chicken/bacon-type meat that's delicious and semi-healthy. A nice break from the carb-fest she so often encourages. I went on another picturesque run after breakfast. On this grass road that leads to a spot of the river, you pass a couple of interesting things including a "hippie farm", some shack-houses that appear neglected, lots of cows, and pair of abandoned vehicles (a blue mini-van and a red motorcycle) both with California license plates. Well... apparently these aren't so abandoned, as I realized the motocicleta had moved since the last time I ran by... dun dun dun.

Ran into this 'lil guy on my walk to school today.

Somehow this rat finds me EVERY day on my walk.

Tonight's our second-to-last night with this homestay family... sad! On Thursday we move back to campus for one night, then we're off for the much anticipated San José and Arenal trip! This is like our spring break trip, and we're so excited. We're all planning on going to a karaoke bar before we leave San Luis though, which is like my worst fear ever. And Shamar's also planning for us to visit a highly revered gay bar when we get to San José... another first for me. We're so excited to see Tyler work it in that environment. Fourth of July will also be interesting here, as I don't that our group will plan some ridiculous tribute to American patriotism.

Pretty bird... pretty bird...

On other agendas, over lunch today Kelsey explained her plans for her wedding: Fall time, 2 o'clock PM (as this is when her family "always convenes for everything"), bridesmaids will be indians, groomsmen will be pilgrims, the reception will feature a feast, and decorations will be cornucopia themed. She says that she'll know she's found the right man when she finally finds someone who will agree to this.

Mi casa es su casa

So we started our homestay portion of the trip two nights ago. I was so nervous before I left, but my family is awesome! There's Doña Miriam, the head bia of the casa, her son Ronald, and his son Marcelo who is 8 years old. The first night was super nerve-wrecking. Everyone in the house only speaks Spanish, but Marcelo studies English one day a week at his school, so he has a lot of patience with me. I think it's easier for us to communicate because he's been exposed to the process of learning a language and will break up the words in a sentence for me to get up to speed. Doña Miriam had dinner ready for me when I got there.. best meal I've had yet! It was some variation of spaghetti, with fried plantains (my faaaaavorite). We then watched the soccer game between Honduras and Mexico. I learned quickly not to cheer for Mexico. Lots of homework that night, so it was a little stressful to try to get that all done, but Marcelo helped edit my paper (without failing to make fun of it first). The next morning I went on a run, super rough, and then was served breakfast of more bread than I could ever eat.

Last night was a lot easier. The family claims that my Spanish is pretty good and that they can understand me. They had three other family members over, so the Spanish was flyin pretty quickly. We ate pizza though which was awesie. And Marcelo really opened up to me. He's a freaking ninja, he can do all kinds of cartwheels and handstands... Maybe he can teach me some tricks along with the Spanish. Oh, and he made fun of my pod-like toes. Meth, I know you'll appreciate that.

Kelsey loves to hang the heck out.

¡Adios!

Pura vida

PS Ashley Knights a cookie queen

¿Quieres?

I really need to get better about posting more frequently. We have just been so busy!

So today we begin our first homestay... eek! We've all been assigned to a family in the surrounding area. Some of the other students are lucky to have some of the UGA workers in their family-- those people are awesome! The dynamic of my family is a little different... the woman of the household is named Miriam. Her son Ronald lives with her, he's in his 30s and does woodwork, and then his son Marcelo is 8 years old. Apparently Ronald is the only single father in San Luis, so my friends have been relentless with the wifey jokes... I'm excited though. And my neighbors have homestay students also so hopefully I'll get to hang out with their families too! We get dropped off at our homes tonight, and then for the rest of the week we walk to and from campus and home for class. The "vecino" where my home is located is in a grove called "Finca la Bella." I actually ran through there the other morning, not knowing that's where I was. It's gorgeous!

Let's see... last time I caught the blog up was before our waterfall hike Sunday morning. That was awesome. We had another early morning wake-up (surprise surprise) and hiked to this gorgeous waterfall just off campus. It was freezing cold but the idea of jumping off rocks into the water made us get over it quickly. Tyler, the daredevil, braved a backflip off of it.

That night we all met up in the rec room for dance lessons to learn the merengue and cumbia, taught by the man the myth the legend, Geovanni! It was so much fun, I can't wait to go crank it up n break it down at Bar Amigos soon! Lolz.

Welp... we're waiting on the porch to head to homestay night numero uno! I'd write more if I had time, so I'll be sure to write tomorrow when I get to campus. ¡Me desean suerte!

¡Pura vida!

¿Porque no?

Bat just casually flew into the biblioteca.

Sleazy flash-rapped during our upper level business course.

Aw, no. Rice and beans again?

Travel and change of place impart new vigor to the mind. ~Seneca

Hola blogosphere. It’s been a few days since my first (and last post), so here goes my attempt to catch y’all up on my glorious adventure...

Forgive me for the cheesiness, but I am inexplicably thrilled about these next two months, and I really do feel like it’s going to be the best two months of my life. Every single person I’ve met is incredible, more on that shortly. All of my classes promise a challenge, more on that shortly. And the more I explore Costa Rica, the more I’m falling in love with this beautiful place.

We started classes on Thursday. My classes go from 1:30 in the afternoon until dinner at 6:00, starting with Spanish Conversation. We’re simply reviewing right now, and its only two students so it’s somewhat slow for us to catch up to the same page. My second class is an upper level Inter-American Relations course. I’m taking it as a business elective, but I’m only one of two people who have not taken an INTL course before. Not to mention that most of the other eight students are INTL majors or minors. Thus, I feel like I’ve got to play some serious catch-up. The teacher’s a young guy who reminds me a lot of Jack Boger (shout-out, J Boge), and the material is demanding but extremely relative so I’m pumped. For example, we’re discussing the fact that Costa Rica doesn’t have a military—the reasons why, the message its sending to the outside world, the idea of realist versus idealist spheres of belief, etc. We have mentioned, and it stays on my mind, that reports show Costa Rica as the “happiest country in the world.” Living here for just under a week I can vouch for that statistic. Everyone is so welcoming and warm to one another. The word “community” is fully embodied here, and it’s so neat to see that within a country without superfluous things.

My final class of the day is another upper level business elective, Employment Law. Our professor is well-renown and published, and she brings a certain passion to the class. We are focusing specifically on discrimination in the work place. She effectively caught our attention (five students- one boy, four girls) on the first day by bringing up recent cases of discrimination and violation of sivil rights in the work place that were absolutely unfathomable. We’re going over the law as it applies to real life, through discussions and stories. Very effective. Some of the discussions have already put me in uncomfortable positions, as we are talking about the realities of society that no one really likes to face. I’m definitely going to get a lot out of this course.

Friday morning we had an early wake-up for cow milking. Wooooo, Bessie! It was actually pretty difficult! And the udders were very weird... tough and “really hot- like, burning”, as Ashley put it. After the milking and breakfast (more AMAAAZING fruit), I went on a run to a path I’d heard about from two of the naturalists on campus that like to run as well. The day before, Olivia and I ran down towards Santa Elena Baja, and both times the hilly terrain was WOOF. But the scenery yesterday morning was unbelievable. The path was a grass road off of the main gravel road, curving down through a valley so beautiful that I think I’m going to deal with the inconvenience of bringing along a camera next time.

Mama y bebe. They have to tie up the baby cows after a while because they will actually eat until they are sick

Shet.

Sarah and Ashley. The face is amazing.

Well last night was… a show. We all (profesores también!) hit up the popular bar named “Dos Amigos” in Santa Elena for our first night out on the town together. I braved the dance floor with some amateur meringue, socialized authentically with los costariqueños, and learned how to effectively tell somebody off, (thank you Leah). Oh, and roommate/GDI Kelsey took the liberty of breaking the “sorostitute” ice just as we were heading out. I took out my “sorority” pearls to opt for something more fun, and instantly the jokes started rolling and haven’t stopped since. (Side note- I’m one of two people in the entire country of Costa Rica that’s involved in a Greek organization. The negative, stuck-up associations with “so-hoes” are not necessarily disputed here. When I tried to get Kelsey to make me feel better by ensuring that I didn’t fit the stigma some expect of a “sorority girl”, her eyes darted between my monogrammed laundry bag, duffel, dop kit, computer case, towel wrap, jewelry bag… Oops? She fantasizes that I’ll one day monogram my Chacos.) Anyway, It’s safe to say that everyone had a good time on Friday night. The result was one angry cab driver, a sprained ankle for Kristina, and a tongue lashing with a side of headache Saturday morning.

¡Paz! Frank, Ashley, and Tyler in the cab

Ashley, Allie, Leah, Tamara, and Sarah.

"Arriba, A bajo, Al centro, Al dentro"

The big night made for a great 6:40 wake up for a trip to the Monteverde Cloud Forest. We took a tour through a legitimate rain forest- ¡que chévere! It was a little hard for us to stay enthusiastic, as Sean legit fell asleep on the trail and Ashley kept rehashing the shames and glories of the previous night. We have this theory that every weekend activity is scheduled no later than 8:30 am to encourage a quick and painful turnover to teach us a lesson, should we go out the night before.

Polk go night night

I fed him this leaf- no joke.

Kelsey nerds for bio. (Livi- doesn't she look like Lucy?)

Today we enjoyed our free afternoon by taking a cab into town (Santa Elena) to watch the Costa Rica vs. Honduras soccer game (I can’t even tell you who won). We all split pitchers of the Costa Rican beer (the hair of the dog that bit you, right?) and a disappointing guacamole appetizer. These individual trips outside of the program have been so much fun for getting to know each other and the city better. “I will CUT you” vs. “I’ll cut you please”- Allie vs. Kelsey round one.

¡Chicas! Ashley, Lea, Allie, me, Kelsea, and Sarah. 

No caption necessary.

Gal pal Scott and phantom Marshall.

Los naturalistas, Luke y Frank/Quatro. "What Camera?"

Tomorrow’s Father’s Day! (Hey Daddy! Hey B!) We’re going to waterfall bright and early, then have home stay orientation. I’m really starting to miss my family and friends, however we’re all finally settling in. The members of our group are so comfortable with each other, and we’re seeing how every person really does bring their own element to the table. Now, if we can just stay out of trouble with the Warnell group…

¡Ciao for now!

~Pura vida

“There is no moment of delight in any pilgrimage like the beginning of it.” – Charles Dudley Warner

 ¡Bienvenidos a mi blog!
Well, here goes nothin’! Yesterday, (Tuesday June 14, 2011), I touched down in the capital of Costa Rica, the “bustling” city of San José. Besides some brief turbulence, which was attributed to the layer of clouds through which we were descending, the flight was peaceful. I was blessed with a window seat in a row next to two other passengers, neither of whom spoke English. As I attempted to communicate through rusty Spanish, I caught a glimpse of the 7 weeks lying ahead.  As a part of the UGA Costa Rica International Studies program, each student will spend two separate weeks with homestay families. After talking to a couple of program veterans, I’ve come to learn that this will be the most challenging part of the whole experience. However, that’s the kind of thing that makes it just that—an experience. Mike, one of the program directors, confirmed today that this is where we’ll most quickly grow into fluent bilinguals (or more, for the Romance Language major, Christine).

View from our plane during the descent to San José.

 

Upon arriving in San José, having never met the other students, we somehow managed converge with our professors and proceeded smoothly through customs. I guess I can give credit to the whole “white young folk” look. I quickly learned that I had the biggest bag, although I’m still not convinced (or refuse to admit) that I overpacked. From the airport we boarded a bus, which took us on a 3+ hour drive to our campus outside of San Luis—a voyage that was much less peaceful. We bounced along the winding mountain roads and were constantly kept on the edge of our seats by the traffic techniques exhibited by our—and every other—driver. Everyone was in disbelief when semis were headed into oncoming traffic of the opposite lane to pass cars in front of them. Not the way you see on backroads in the States. We’re talking semi trucks, that didn’t leave that much of a grace period for the passing. However, we were treated with our first fauna spotting, a pack of monkeys in trees alongside the road, as well as gorgeous scenery of the mountains and valleys as we really got on up there.

We finally got to the campus as the sky was falling out and the sun had set, right around 6:00. That’s one thing you learn quickly, there is no dusk or dawn. Sun is up at six, sun is down at six, and it almost ALWAYS rains in the afternoon. I’m currently in the rec pavilion, an open air space, and its raining. It was a blessing last night in the “bungalows”, however, to have our own sound maker outside with the rain falling steadily. Everything is so lush here. My roommate Leah was spot-on when she claimed it reminded her of the Jurassic Park landscape, and so was Shamar when he described the plant leaves as similar to those in Avatar. Our view off our front porch is incredible and offers a fair image of the Monteverde Cloud Forest, which our campus lies on the border of.

View from right outside our door-- rough.

Today we ventured into the quaint town of Santa Elena to explore and do a bit of shopping. We found a cute family-owned coffee shop, but the employee’s perfect English prompted us to ask where he picked it up, and to our dismay we learned that we were in a very touristy spot of the city. I guess that should have been obvious from the first sign of “Stella’s Bakery.” We were sure to take note of the few bars and restaurants that we are all excited to go out to later this week.  The drive to and from the town was equally as incredible as our drive in.

A Leah and Sarah sandwich!

One of the town perros. We're advised to ignore them as they will
follow you wherever you go if you offer them any attention, despite the fact they're fed each night in their own homes. 

Crea una obra de arte con cada café.

Honey badger don't care.

 When we got back a group of us decided to hike one of the campus’ trails. We made a spectacle out of every insect or curious plant, and Tyler’s curiosity earned him a healthy bunch of hairy splinters after touching a funny-looking orange “plant thing.” The multiple trails of red ants were very cool, which we were able to spot by the walking leaves. It reminded me of a feature in Planet Earth… such an American.

This post was pretty boring, lo siento.

¡Ciao!